Guangdong party chief Hu Chunhua is said to have ordered raids on Dongguan brothels after a CCTV report accused police of protecting the sex trade. Photo: SCMP

After coming to power in 1949, the Communist Party quickly ordered a nationwide crackdown on prostitution, which the public welcomed, literally, with song and praise.

Six decades later, the world's oldest profession is alive and well on the mainland, and periodic campaigns to stamp it out are more likely to stir public sympathy for sex workers.

News of this week's vice blitz in the Pearl River Delta industrial hub of Dongguan was met with online comments like "Dongguan, hang in there" and "the public has your back".

The Guangdong provincial propaganda department, on the day after the CCTV exposé that sparked the police raids, said on its Sina Weibo account that people should judge Dongguan by its other merits, such as its tolerance of outsiders and contribution to the world's electronics industry. The people of the city need not worry about "being looked down upon", it said, without mentioning the police raids.

The simple truth is that no amount of police effort can eradicate certain human needs. The intensity of the public reaction to the crackdown reflected not just the lack of credibility of such government programmes, but also how social values have changed in modern times.

The report aired by CCTV on Sunday claimed the city's thriving underground sex trade was being protected by po lice.

Watch: CCTV news report on sex trade in Dongguan

According to local media reports, Guangdong party secretary, Hu Chunhua, ordered the crackdown straight after he watched the report. On Thursday, Xinhua reported a special task force involving the city's entire police force would conduct a three-month, provincial-wide campaign to eradicate prostitution. Guangdong provincial public security chief Li Chunsheng also vowed to root out police involvement in the trade.

While many countries legalise or at least regulate prostitution, mostly for public health and to prevent crime, mainland authorities see such solutions to the "problem" - to quote a recent People's Daily editorial - as "blasphemy against civilisation".

The emergence of such a thriving sex industry in a place like Dongguan is a complicated matter and should not simply be treated as a moral issue. It could also be argued that, compared with polluting state-controlled energy corporations, or manufacturers of tainted infant milk formula, or official corruption, the sex trade is more honest.

It is an open secret that Li Dongsheng , the former deputy national police chief who worked for two decades at CCTV, introduced at least two anchor women as wives to senior officials including Zhou Yongkang - a real irony for the state broadcaster who exposed the Dongguan sex trade.

According to sources, some Dongguan police were tipped off before the Lunar New Year about the looming crackdown. The biggest players with the most at stake were warned to dodge police raids. Media reports said many hotels, saunas and massage parlours avoided being raided by claiming they were carrying out renovations or had simply closed for business. It was also reported that more than 60 per cent of the working women had been warned to stay at home until the campaign passed.

On a more pragmatic level, the police move could cost Dongguan dearly, not only to the sex industry directly, but also the livelihoods of taxi drivers, cosmetics and fashion retailers, and landlords. Others say the crackdown could wipe 50 billion yuan (HK$64 billion) from Dongguan's economy, or 10 per cent of the city's gross domestic product.

And while the police might drive the sex industry out of Dongguan, many believe it will simply move elsewhere.

"Many of the businesses have relocated to Ronggui and Nanhai townships in Foshan , and others have gone to Zhongshan ," one knowledgeable person said . "They are offering higher commissions to the women. These places are less notorious, offering more stable income."

Why is it okay to turn a blind eye to the rich and powerful who spoil their mistresses with ill-gotten money while barring sex workers from making a living?

You can't stop the sex trade in China. It is everywhere and runs deep in society, while mostly very discreet. Some ignorant Chinese blame foreigners to "enjoy the sex life" in China but the truth is, the vast majority of the trade, especially the "VIP" levels and the low levels are 100% Chinese. I agree to combat drugs, pimps and gang activities but the police should not treat the girls as animals. They deserve at least some respect.

goncalo Feb 16th 201411:10am

Leave the girls alone!

josephbrahmana Feb 17th 20147:57am

"Why is it okay to turn a blind eye to the rich and powerful who spoil their mistresses with ill-gotten money while barring sex workers from making a living?" An excellent point Ms. Lau!!!

moral cannot change society and reality on a snap!!! if the government, society and policies can offer alternatives, there will be less of this. many of these ladies as you labeled "these women" should be respected. They face an unjust society that favors men. many of these so called developed country has similar story in the past. These ladies did what they have to do, the ones that can earn enough money, return home, buy a house for their parents, open up a business, get married and pay for their children's education. this is just part of a price to pay for progress, you may call it a the generation that is sacrificed for their young. so, I think your so called "moral" is "ill-founded"

patrick.gifford.180 Feb 21st 20141:01pm

always crackdown on low budget places, the police will never crackdown on higher night clubs in Foshan , protection of the elite , i mean just wake up once for all

likingming Feb 17th 20144:45pm

Moral problems should be dealt with by moral means (禮義廉恥), not by laws.

aplucky1 Feb 16th 20142:21pm

omg stop acting like this ONLY HAPPENS IN CHINAand the other elitist snobs that think everyone should be a sleazy banker or a google programmerI am sure NOBODY WAS COMPLAINING about this, a totally harmless and victim-less vice

agreed, imo, those low life CCTV reporters are now in hiding and they should string up those so called law enforcement idiots. how can you stop sex? it is the law of nature!!!

snelderj Feb 16th 20148:01am

your "sympathy" is ill-found, we'd better focus our effort on finding alternatives for these women than letting them stuck with a dead end job stripping their dignity. the crackdown must go on, we cant throw our moral compass away just because of your ill-found "sympathy"

Anand Kumar Feb 25th 20149:01pm

so many Countries try to stop sex Business but they were not successful. You apply any kind of force to stop it but it will again come back with that equal force. here one can applied newton third law of motion: For every action there is equal and opposite reaction.The best way to control is to legalize this World's oldest profession .